Isaiah 45:1, 4-6
Psalm 96:1, 3, 4-5, 7-8. 9-10
I Thessalonians 1:1-5B
Matthew 22:15-21
Summary
In today’s Gospel, the Pharisees and their allies tried to trick Jesus by
asking him a politically-sensitive and dangerous question as to whether
it was lawful for the Roman government (“Caesar”) to collect a highly
unpopular tax from the Jews. Jesus saw through their trap and asked
them to produce the coin used to pay the tax, inquiring of them whose
image was on the coin. When they replied “Caesar’s”, he directed
them to “repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what be-
longs to God.”
Reflection
Since it is God’s plan that as humans on this earth we live in communities and
societies, of necessity we are governed by a temporal authority while we are
here. However, that earthly government ultimately comes from God, and all its
trappings, wealth, attachments and requirements should never get in the way of
our primary
purpose in
life as Chris-
tians, which
is to strive for
and reach
God’s king-
dom and ful-
fill our des-
tiny to be-
come citizens
of that
“higher king-
dom”.